Smoked salmon and mushroom quiche recipe

Hot smoked salmon adds rich flavour to every bite of this quiche. Photo / Fresh Media

Sunny days are here, and it’s time to think about recipes for light dinners, family picnics, or special al fresco lunches. There’s no shame in using ready-made pastry for this quiche – it cuts down on the prep time and gives you more time to enjoy the sun!

Smoked salmon and mushroom quiche

Serves 8

Ingredients

For the crust

2 sheets frozen shortcrust pastry, defrosted

For the filling

1 Tbsp butter

1 leek

200g white button mushrooms, sliced

180g hot smoked salmon

50g crumbly feta cheese

5 large eggs

350ml cream

1 tsp wholegrain mustard

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C.
2. On a lightly floured surface, place the two pastry sheets on top of each other. Roll the pastry slightly larger than the size of a deep 23cm pie dish.
3. Press the pastry into the bottom and sides of the pie dish and trim the excess. Line the pastry with baking paper and fill with baking weights or rice. Bake for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the baking paper and hot baking weights. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C and cook for a further 10 minutes until the pastry is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
4. While the crust is cooling, make the filling. Cut the leek in half lengthways, rinse to remove any dirt, and slice the white part thinly. Melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat and saute the leek for a few minutes until starting to soften.
5. Add the sliced mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms are tender and the leek is soft. Cool slightly, then spread over the prepared quiche crust.
6. Crumble the feta and break the hot smoked salmon up into small chunks and scatter over the vegetables.
7. Whisk the eggs with the cream, mustard, salt, and pepper and pour gently into the crust.
8. Bake for 40 minutes until beautifully golden but still a little wobbly in the middle. Let it rest for 10 minutes (the centre will continue cooking during this time) before removing from the tin and serving. This quiche is just as delicious served at room temperature.

– fresh.co.nz